Ethan Zohn, the curly-haired soccer player who battled the elements and outwitted opponents to win Survivor: Africa, is facing his toughest adversary yet: cancer.

On April 30, Zohn was diagnosed with stage two Hodgkin's disease. The diagnosis came after months of unexplained itching and night sweats, originally thought to be a skin condition. Doctors discovered a swollen lymph node under his left clavicle, and a CT scan revealed a mass on the left side of his chest. Then, just last week, Zohn learned he is suffering from a rare form the disease called CD20-positive Hodgkin's Lymphoma, for which he began chemotherapy last Friday.

"This is the ultimate game of Survivor," Zohn, 35, tells PEOPLE exclusively, "and there's really only one outcome, and that's to win. There's no other option."

Hodgkin's disease is a cancer of the body's lymphatic system with survival rates reaching as high as 90 percent. Zohn was told that the CD20 diagnosis, which affects around five percent of all Hodgkin's patients, has a similar cure rate, but is treated with an altered, more aggressive, three-month chemotherapy regimen. "They're going right after this," he says.

The chemo is expected to knock the always active and otherwise fit Zohn mostly out of commission for a few months, with nausea and weakness among its side effects. And he's expected to lose his famous mop of hair within two weeks.

Zohn's longtime girlfriend, Survivor: The Amazon winner Jenna Morasca, 27, is vowing to be at his side throughout the process. "I will fight with every fabric of my being to get him through this," Morasca tells PEOPLE.

Educating, Inspiring OthersBoth Zohn and Morasca lost parents to cancer. Zohn's father died of colon cancer when Ethan was 14. Morasca's mother died in 2003, after a 12-year battle with breast cancer. "Our only point of reference with this situation is death," says Morasca.

Upon hearing the diagnosis, says Zohn, "My life flashed before my eyes." But in the roller coaster of emotions that followed, Zohn came to a conclusion: He wants to use his battle with cancer as way to educate and inspire others.

"This is happening for a reason," he tells PEOPLE. "You have to get spiritual about this [stuff]. I know I want to help people and inspire people. That's my purpose in life. So I need to use this as a platform."

Zohn, who has worked to raise money and awareness for AIDS relief in Africa through his Grassroot Soccer charity ever since winning Survivor's $1-million prize in 2002, had his first chemo treatment in Manhattan last Friday. Doctors inserted a small, octagonal port in his chest through which the chemo will be administered "like a fast-filling station" every two weeks. "It looks like I have a third nipple right now," says Zohn. "You can call me trip-nip!"

He'll face the loss of his hair with the same bravado. "My hair is my identity," he admits. But rather than find "long, disgusting Ethan Zohn hair all over my house," he's decided to shave it off in the next few days: "I'll get a mohawk or something fun that I've always wanted to do."

That's just fine with Morasca. "I so love the bad-boy look," she says. "I'd have him get a tattoo and a nose piercing, too, but he's not into it."

Bad-boy looks or not, Zohn says he feels well-prepared for the long fight ahead. "I've got good family and friends, and I'll roll with the punches as it comes to me. That's how I work in life. I'll take it on like a real game of Survivor," he says, adding: "I'm not getting voted out of this one."

Ethan Zohn, the winner of "Survivor: Africa," has been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.

The 35-year-old curly-haired soccer player -- who battled the African elements and outwitted opponents to win the hit CBS reality show in 2002 -- was diagnosed with stage two Hodgkin's disease last month, according to People magazine.

The diagnosis came after months of unexplained itching and night sweats and was originally thought to be a skin condition, but a CT scan later revealed a mass on the left side of his chest. Zohn began chemotherapy last Friday and called his battle "the ultimate game of Survivor," People reports.

Zohn remains upbeat about his condition, saying: "There's really only one outcome, and that's to win. There's no other option." Hodgkin's disease is a cancer of the body's lymphatic system that is highly treatable and has survival rates up to 90 percent.

The mop-topped, soccer-playing winner of Survivor: Africa has lopped off his mop. Well, most of it anyway.

Ethan Zohn, 35, who last week revealed to PEOPLE that he's battling a rare form of Hodgkin's disease, decided to cut off his trademark curly locks in anticipation of losing his hair from intense chemotherapy treatments he began on May 15. He even took a video-camera along to document his day at the salon for PEOPLE.com.

"Jenna loves it!" Zohn says, referring to his girlfriend, Survivor: The Amazon winner Jenna Morasca, 28, who accompanied Zohn to Manhattan's Dop Dop Salon on May 20. "She thinks I should have done it 10 years ago. I look like a bad-ass now and not a preppy."

Cutting his familiar hair was not an easy decision. "I'm the curly haired soccer player from Survivor. It's my identity," says Zohn. But the trip to the salon meant more than that. "I was nervous sitting in the chair, not because I was cutting my hair off. Hair grows back – but it's what it represented. 'I'm cutting my hair because I have cancer and I'm going through chemo.' "

But after the 'do was done, he liked the look so much, he says, "I don't know if I'll ever grow it back!"

Zohn expects that all of his hair – including his scruffy beard – will fall out within days of his second chemo treatment on May 29.

Cutting his hair wound up being "one of the most liberating moments of my life," says Zohn, who is vowing to stay positive and to use his battle with cancer to help educate and inspire others. "I realized I've been shackled by my hair. I suddenly felt free and alive. It looks great, and overall I'm pretty psyched about it."

Originally posted Thursday June 18, 2009 09:00 AM EDTAs he continues three months of intense chemotherapy to fight a rare form of Hodgkin's Lymphoma, Survivor: Africa winner Ethan Zohn is opening up about the medication he needs to keep going.

In an exclusive video blog for People.com, Zohn – accompanied by his girlfriend Survivor: The Amazon winner Jenna Morasca – shows off the array of prescription pills required to counter the effects of his cancer treatment.

"The chemotherapy knocks me down, so I've gotta take all this stuff to boost me back up," Zohn says, as he talks about his new daily rituals.

In April, after suffering months of undiagnosed itching and night-sweats, Zohn, 35, was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease. In May, doctors discovered he was suffering from a rare form of the cancer called CD20-positive Hodgkin's Lymphoma. The shaggy-haired soccer player and founder of AIDS charity Grassroot Soccer then chopped off his curly locks in anticipation of losing his hair to chemo.

Vowing to stay upbeat and inspire others, Zohn is now taping weekly video blogs for PEOPLE

I think hes frigging awesome and is keeping his spirits up. You should see the support and love he is getting at Facebook.

Ethan is truly a Survivor in more ways than one and just adorable! Love the haircut!

I know Ethan will beat it. I have total confidence he will. He truly is an inspiration and will go to show that anybody can fight and win the battle! I admire his total dedication to charity and his love for kids. He is a total example in Survivor in every way it counts.

"I've never really been this scared for my life," Ethan Zohn says in his latest video diary. Sitting in a hospital room, the Survivor winner taped the piece as he was about to start his first new round of chemotherapy – since learning that the first three months of chemo aimed at knocking out his Hodgkin's lymphoma wasn't enough.

"The cancer is back ... and it's trying to destroy me," Zohn says. "But I'm not going to let that happen."

Zohn describes in detail the gravity of the new treatment he's about to endure – starting with more chemotherapy, followed by a harvesting of his healthy stem cells; a series of radiation treatments twice a day, everyday, for two weeks; and finally a full stem-cell transplant.

Of the final leg of what he describes as the "triathlon" of treatment, he explains, "They lock me up in the hospital for 30 days and they pretty much destroy my body, get all the blood cells out of my body, and then they'll reintroduce my stem cells and build me back up to perfect health."

The process will require he be kept in full isolation until his immune system is rebuilt.

"For all you Seinfeld fans out there, I will officially be 'The Bubble Boy'!" Zohn jokes.

Striving to remain as upbeat as possible, Zohn says, "I'm gonna need to hijack all your thoughts, your prayers and well-wishes for the next seven to 12 months."

"I get so much comfort knowing that we're all fighting this together," Zohn says, directing his thoughts to PEOPLE.com viewers. "Please everyone, stay positive, and keep a good sense of humor. And that's about it," he adds, before putting a protective mask on his face to begin his first new round of chemotherapy.

Three months of chemotherapy this past summer weren't enough to knock out Ethan Zohn's case of Hodgkin's lymphoma. So he's back in the hospital, connected to tubes and wires, undergoing even more chemotherapy – and in his latest video diary, he takes viewers inside his tiny room to share the experience and let his fans know how he's doing.

"I have been locked in this room for three days, and I've gone a little bit stir crazy, I'm not gonna lie," says the Survivor: Africa winner, reclining in a hospital bed in part one of a new three-stage battle he's waging against the resurgent cancer.

In late August, Zohn discovered that the cancer he had been treating since May had actually spread. Last month, he began an intense treatment regimen, starting with two new chemo sessions. Those will be followed by radiation therapy, and – in December – a complete stem-cell replacement therapy that will keep him in the hospital for 30 days straight.

Finding a way to break his stir-craziness after three days, the always-driven athlete says in the video that he was excited to finally get up and walk around – just before taping his message to viewers.

"They finally let me out in the hallway where I could do some walking," he says. "Fourteen laps [around the hall] is a mile, and of course I tried to break the record – so I did 28 laps. Which I'm pretty happy about."

Showing his usual upbeat nature, Zohn adds that he's feeling positive about the new chemotherapy: "So far so good. I feel it killing all the cancer in my body, and I'm excited to keep doing what I'm doing – and I'll see you soon," he says.